


Ara Abigail Dingle-Sugden

by 7amlecturerambles



Category: Emmerdale
Genre: Alternate Universe, Domestic Fluff, M/M, dad robron
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-30
Updated: 2018-07-06
Packaged: 2019-05-29 15:05:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 14,679
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15075758
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/7amlecturerambles/pseuds/7amlecturerambles
Summary: drabbles and prompts about Robron and their daugther Ara.Non-linear





	1. Ara Abigail Dingle-Sugden Headcanons

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

\- Aaron is away for a couple of nights and as Robert was trying to get Ara ready for bed, she was being grumpy and saying she wants her daddy (Aaron). Poor Robbo, he just wants to make his daughter happy and has such an overwhelming feeling of not being good enough. But, in the middle of the night, Ara climbs into bed and snuggles against his soft tummy. Aaron comes home early in the morning, and tiptoes upstairs only to see Ara and Robert all snuggled together and his heart melts. He snaps a quick photo and them goes to catch some zzz’s on the sofa, not to wake two of his favorite people.

\- Aaron is the one to give Ara her first sweet. A day off from work while Robert has meetings, and a trip to see Bob at the cafe leads to Aaron giving Ara her first taste of chocolate (look at her face, how can he resist?) Only this comes to bite them both in the butt becasue now every time she is even in the same airspace as something chocolate, the boys have to calm a far too excited Ara- no, chocolate does not make a good breakfast!

\- Ara, being the little storyteller she is- starts to make up her own bedtime stories. She surprises her dads one night with the story of two dragon-slayers that fall in love: a tall blonde and the other with fluffy, brown curls.

\- Ara gets chicken pox and Rob is half worried/half livid (who brings a poxed child to school, really?!?) Rob takes full control, although he is internally freaking out over his sick little girl. They sit on the sofa watching cartoons- Rob, making sure to hold her tiny hands in his enormous ones the whole time so she doesn’t scratch. But, Aaron catches Rob sitting in her doorway in the middle of the night, watching her sleep. She will be fine Rob.

\- Ara refers to Robert’s freckles as his “face glitter” because they are scattered across his face like she scatters glitter on all her art projects.

\- Aaron and Robert have to go to some fancy work event and they get all dressed up in their suits and just as they are about to leave (Liv is on babysitting duty) Ara comes charging down the stairs in a princess dress, wanting to come. They boys promise to spend time with her when they come home, but it will have to wait because Ara is out like a light on the sofa, still in her princess dress.

\- When Ara goes to University (of course she has to go far away, the little adventurer) As the boys are helping her pack, Aaron runs across a tattered stuffed bunny that she used to drag around everywhere with ehr and Aaron needs a moment- his little girl is all grown up.  
\- Everyone else may think Aaron looks good in his signature color, black. But, Ara thinks her daddy needs some color. Aaron catches her one day going to work on his clothes with her markers, glitter and stickers. Oh well, he needed some new clothes anyway.

\- An image: Robert, clad in one of Aaron’s hoodies, with an infant Ara strapped to his chest in a baby sling, having a dance party throughout the Mill to whatever pop song is on the radio.

\- Ara decides that she will tackle the biggest tree in the park, only it ends with her taking a tumble and breaking her arm. But, it’s okay, because Auntie Liv to the rescue! She turns Ara’s boring cast into the fantasy mural of her dreams.

\- Ara loves to get ready in the morning with Rob while he gets suited and booted. She especially loves drawing pictures in the steamed-up mirror left over from Rob’s shower while he fixes his hair.

\- Ara may be a brave little girl, but thunder and lightning are one of the things that terrify her. During her first major thunderstorm, Ara was scared out of her mind, so Aaron and Robert cuddle up with her under an enormous duvet and hold her close until she settles. From then on, even when Ara becomes a teenager, whenever there is a storm, you can find Ara cuddled with her dads under that enormous duvet.

\- One of Ara’s favorite pastimes is to mess with Cain. She gets off of the bus from school and goes to the garage and sits on the hood of a car and just talks Cain’s ear off. It gets to the point that Cain is dragging Ara to the scrapyard, threatening to charge Aaron for all the lost work hours. Aaron just smiles and tells Ara to go and start her homework in the port-a-cabin. But, Cain loves it really, let’s face it.

\- When Ara starts to babble (she can’t quite talk yet, but she is trying her hardest) Robert loves to humor her by laying on the sofa with her perched on his tummy, having a full-on “conversation” with her wile she just babbles incoherently. Maybe this contributes to the fact that Ara is such a little chatterbox when she does start to actually talk.

\- At the start of every new school year, Rob takes countless pictures of little Ara, proud as can be. And, throughout the rest of the day, should he have to meet with a client/have a meeting to attend, he tries to slip in the fact that his adorable daughter just started year (?) and look at her picture!

\- Whenever Ara gets nervous/anxious about something (ever since she was tiny) Aaron would tug on one of her unruly curls- just so she knows that she is there, right behind her. Even when she grows up and is ready to walk down the isle- a little tug on the loose curl pulls her out of her nervous head.

\- When Ara is a teenager, she likes to pop in and out of the scrapyard after school to visit her dads. And before she leaves to head off back home- she always leaves little notes on her dads’ desk. Whether they be reminders (we need more OJ) or even little sassy remarks if she is mad at them at the time. But, most of the time, there is just a little heart on a scrap piece of paper for her fathers.

\- The official word about the village is “Liv and Ara: Professional Schemers.” Whenever Liv gets herself into some trouble (or at least goes looking for some) Ara is not too far behind, looking to follow in her Auntie Liv’s troublesome footsteps, much to her fathers’ “delight”

\- Ara knows how to read her dads’ like a book. She knows that if Aaron is struggling with his mental health (Daddy has bad days and sometimes he gets really sad) Ara insists that he take her to the park, knowing her daddy likes to run a lot and get out of the house on his sad days. When they arrive, Ara asks Aaron if “HE” wants to get pushed on the swings- it makes her happy to fly high up in the air- and it never fails to make him smile. Conversely, Ara knows that when Robert is sad (Pops misses his mom sometimes) she places multiple stuffed animals on Robert and Aaron’s bed because she knows when Pops is sad, he turns into a cuddle monster, so Ara gives Robert her favorite things to cuddle with. It always ends up with Rob and Ara cuddling on the bed, reading a story together. Ara is Rob’s favorite thing to cuddle (apart from Aaron- of course!)

\- As much as Rob loves/is proud of Ara for whatever she does, he can’t help but be a bit demanding. He just wants his daughter to succeed and show the world just how amazing she is (something he knows all too well.) But, sometimes it gets to be too much for Ara and she and Rob have a nasty fight about his pushing/pressure and breaks down. It all ends with Rob and a teenage Ara cuddled together on the sofa and Rob vowing to back off- she needs to spread her wings.

-The one time that Aaron can’t come to a fancy work thing, Rob decides to take a 12 year old Ara with him instead. Liv helps her get all dressed up and it takes Rob’s breath away about how beautiful and grown his daughter is. And, of course, Ara charms everyone! Rob definitely gained some new clients and he has a beautiful night to look back on, the first night his daughter got all dressed up with Pops!

\- Aaron doesn’t run as much as he used to (no energy since Ara was born) But, on days he really needs that release, he will strap Ara to his chest in a baby sling and go for an early morning walk around the village- when the world is quite. He wraps his hoodie around Ara and zips it up, so she is safely snuggled and warm against his chest and just walks until his mind clears (and he wants to get back home and warm up in bed with his hubby.)

\- Some days it really hits Aaron and Robert that they really are parents. Like the day when their morning “sexytimes’ gets interrupted by furious and frenzied knocks on the door by little fists (they learned to lock the door after all this time.) Ara demanding to know why she can’t get in for her morning snuggles with her daddies. Maybe they can convince Chas to take her for the weekend, a hotel room is calling their name!

-One of the first pieces of clothing that Aaron buys Ara is a tiny high-vis vest, training for the day when she is old enough to help daddy at the scrapyard (absolutely not, if Rob has anything to say about it!) But, the fight doesn’t last too long because the scrapyard is one of Ara’s favorite places to be. She uses the yard as her won personal playground and she loves helping daddy. But, when she inevitably gets bored of all the scrapping, she goes into the port-a-cabin and sits on Rob’s lap and colors while he works at his desk.

-When Ara is a baby, she is mesmerized by the twinkling Christmas lights that decorate the tree at the Mill. Whether it be Aaron or Robert that gets up with her at night, they turn on the Christmas lights and rock their daughter back to sleep with her looking dreamily at the colored twinkles as she drifts off to sleep.

\- When Ara gets engaged, Aaron and Rob are thrilled (although they never think anybody is good enough for their little girl.) Ara tells them that they don’t even need to discuss wedding venues, the only place she wants to have her wedding is in the Woolpack (and she might have told Cain to bring a welly along as well- got to keep that family tradition going!)

-When Ara looses her first tooth, it is an ordeal! Wanting to show how brave she is, she yanks her loose tooth out- only to have it pour blood. Lots of panicking and some tears later, when Ara is cleaned up and calmed down, Ara is ready to talk tooth fairy (when she will come and what she will pay.) Rob is secretly so proud that Ara wants to wait up and negotiate prices with the tooth fairy.

\- When Ara gets her first period, nobody knows what the hell to do. Aaron tries to put the duty on Rob to explain the specifics (you were married to a woman-didn’t Chrissie tell you anything?) But, it doesn’t work out well with the absence of Liv. Aaron makes a call to Vic asking her to make a trip over…quickly! After an awkward conversation (for everyone) it is agreed that they will leave Vic and Liv to deal with specifics and Aaron and Robert will be supportive and help in anyway that they can. Let’s just say , when Ara starts to get a bit more moody than usual, they makes sure to have some extra chocolate in the house.

\- Baby proofing the Mill is “fun.” Rob stats out int he kitchen, working his way through all the hande-less drawers and cupboards all while Aaron is “supervising” and simultaneously trying to care for a crying Ara, whose little body is battling a cold. But, with Rob on the job, he just ends up with his sleeve caught (you can’t cut it Aaron, do you know how much this shirt cost?)

\- As Ara grows, Robert makes sure he sets aside time just for her. Between two businesses and Ara’s schooling, it is sometimes hard to have time to spend with his family. Never wanting Ara to feel unimportant or forgotten, like Rob felt growing up with his dad, he sets aside one Saturday a month to have a daddy-daughter day with Ara, just her and him, they can do whatever they want. It continues long after Ara is grown and she comes home to visit, they set aside a day just for them.

\- A few months after Ara is born, Aaron and Rob mutually decide that Aaron will go back to work at the scrapyard and Rob will work form home and watch after Ara. Every morning after Aaron leaves for work and Liv heads off for school (or at least he hopes she went to school) Robert brings Ara into his and Aaron’s bedroom and sits with his knees up and Ara leaning back against his thighs, having a quiet conversation with his baby girl before he decides it is time for coffee.

\- Rob takes it upon himself to teach Ara to cook (she can’t go through life living on toast Aaron) It usually ends up all right- not that Aaron complains too much, he is getting fed after all, but they still don’t talk about “The Great Sauce Incident” (you can still see some discoloring on one of the kitchen walls!)

-The day comes when Rob tells a teen Ara about Jack. They sit on Ara’s bed and Robert goes through everything. At one point, Rob starts to get a bit emotional and Ara, without hesitation, reaches out and envelopes her dad in a hug and a kiss on the cheek. After all is said and done, they head downstairs for food and telly and Ara falls asleep on the sofa with her feet in Rob’s lap, knowing she is one of the luckiest kids out there- she has two of the strongest parents going.

\- Rob and Aaron love how curious and inquisitive Ara is, but they are never prepared for the kinds of questions that Ara asks: What does the moon sound like? How small are the singers on the radio? Do the clouds have feelings? They are getting quite skilled at either coming up with an answer on the fly (or telling Ara to ask the other dad!)

\- When fall hits the village, Aaron sits and watches Ara play in the pile of leaves and he can’t help but think of himself as one of the luckiest guys. At this age, Aaron was going though hell- and now he has a gorgeous husband, an awesome sister and a beautiful daughter who is laughing her head off with leaves tangled in her wild hair.

-Ara watched “Cinderella” and now every time she sees a couple out and about in the village, she asks them if they are each other’s prince/princess and if the glass slipper fit. Ara also tries to get her daddies to dance with her every chance she gets (her daddies are each other’s Prince Charming…obviously…just look at them!)

\- Ara and Robert have a routine- whenever Rob has some big work presentation or meeting, Ara gives Rob a little pep talk to get him confident and excited (Pops needs to get smiley to make the grumpy men happy!)

\- When Ara is a teen and she has her first romantic failure, she starts to feel sad and insecure. Well, both her dads hate to see their daughter doubting herself, so to cheer her up, they attempt to tell Ara about their romantic failures (excluding the illegal and salacious details…) But it ends up with Aaron and Ara laughing at and making fun of Rob about his romantic missteps over the years (it’s okay…we love you…now!)

\- When Ara is in primary school, she has a Christmas concert that she spends weeks practicing for (if the boys have to hear “Jingle Bells” one more time…) But, on the day, they are bursting with pride- seeing Ara beaming on that stage, decked out in reindeer antlers (which a photo of may have ended up as Aaron’s phone wallpaper.)

\- Zoo Day! Ara is beyond excited to see the animals and Aaron cannot wait to show her. Robbo, on the other hand, isn’t as thrilled. As happy as it makes him to see his family happy, he feels dirty just being there (why couldn’t we have just taken her to Paddy’s) Every time Ara reaches out to the animals, all he can think about is how filthy they are (they are covered in poop Aaron!)

\- Ara’s first Halloween costume is an elephant. They are also the photos of her that Rob pulls out whenever potential dates stop by the Mill to meet the parents (Aaron can’t save her now…you know what your father is like.)

\- Robert hates to see Ara cry, and so for anytime that she gets upset, Rob has a whole library of cheesy “dad” jokes that he tells her to get her to crack a smile. It works, most of the time, Rob gives it a 95% success rate!

\- On Aaron’s first birthday he has with Ara-Rob lets him sleep in (because newborns…) but, Aaron’s new internal clock wakes him early still. He pads down the stairs and sees Rob rocking on his feet with a sleepy Ara, her head on his shoulder, shushing her and rubbing her back. But, the peace doesn’t last long, the toast starts to burn, Rob freaks out, Ara starts to scream. So much for a quiet birthday (but Aaron wouldn’t have it any other way.) 

\- The cricket pavilion ends up becoming Ara and Aaron’s place to talk, not matter how old the building, or Ara, is getting. Whenever Ara is pissed at her dads or sad, or just needs a place to unwind from the village drama, you can be sure to find her at the cricket pavilion. And Aaron knows that if she ever storms out of the house, that is the first place he should look to find her.It ends up becoming Ara and Aaron’s little hideaway, just for father and daughter to talk. And the day after Ara decides to leave the village, going off on her own travels as a young woman, Aaron takes a trip to the cricket pavilion. He is greeted by a carving in the wood next to his “Aaron woz ere” there is a matching inscription of “Ara was here”

\- Ara develops a habit-starting from when she was young-of stealing Aaron’s jumpers. The comfiest she can ever get is to lounge around in her dad’s clothes-sweater paws and all. And Aaron knows if he is missing a jumper, he goes straight to Ara’s room first to have a look. 

\- When Ara is six years old, she goes though a bout where she has nightmares every night without fail (thanks to a night of Liv babysitting and Ara peeking in on a horror movie that she was watching-when she should have been in bed.) It ends up with Aaron curled up with her in her tiny little bed soothing her back to sleep (even though his body doesn’t thank him for it in the morning.) 

\- Ara’s wedding speech leaves everyone in tears. Her dads are the worst of all- especially when Ara says that she has a great example of unconditional love in a relationship…and that is thanks to her dads. 

\- The day that Ara learns to ride a bike started out as a great day…only it ended up with Ara losing control and gashing her leg wide open. At the hospital, a rattled Aaron and Robert listen to an excited Ara brag about how fast she went/how good she is while she gets stitched up.


	2. So Go

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Ara was restless, and Aaron could see it. Every chance available, Ara was out of the village like a speeding bullet. And when she returned home again, you could see that exuberant light, the one that was so distinctly “Ara,” just fizzle out. And Aaron could just see it.

Ara had just turned 18, and in the true Dingle fashion, had a hell of a blowout at the Woolpack. And Aaron and Robert watched their baby girl take her first (okay…first couple) of drinks, all spurred on by the Dingle lot, and just have the time of her life.

That was a few months ago, and Aaron could see the change in his daughter.

He had spent a sleepless night, laying awake, waiting for Ara to return home after a night out in town with a large group of her friends, an opportunity she jumped at.

He got out of bed at first light, tip-toeing through the bedroom and down the hall, as to not wake Robert and the dog, who is asleep at his rightful place at the end of their bed. Opening the door and peering in, Aaron is confronted with his niggling nighttime worry, an empty bedroom. Ara never came home.

Aaron quickly throws on the clothes he finds closest, waking his husband be damned, and heads out the door. He knows the first place to look, and he starts furiously ringing his daughter as he heads to that spot. 

And he was right. He heads up the hill towards the now crumbling cricket pavilion, and towards his daughter’s ringtone, one that she is obviously ignoring.

“You are going to have to find a better hiding spot if you want to get away from me, ya’ know?”

Ara doesn’t respond to her father’s presence, she just continues starring out at the open field, down toward the still early morning quiet village.

“Especially since this is our place, me and you…” Aaron continues, making his way over to where Ara is slumped against the wall, following suit.

“Did you have fun last night?” he questions a still quiet Ara.

She finally turns her head toward him, “The best.”

“You didn’t come home last night.”

“Didn’t get in ‘till this morning, sorry.”

“Must have been a good night then?” Aaron chuckles.

Silence falls between father and daughter once again. And Aaron knows he finally has to say it.

“You don’t want to be here, do you?”

Ara snaps her head to look at her dad, her eyebrows knitted together and the corners of her mouth turned down, a look that reminds Aaron too much of himself.

“What…what does that mean?”

“I mean…the village. You don’t want to be here, do you?”

“Of course I do!”

“Ara, every chance you get, you are out of here so fast, honey.”

 

“I don’t know what you want me to say…that I hate it here. Because I don’t! This is my home! It’s just…” her words start to trail off.

“Love, it’s okay. You have outgrown the village. You have a big heart and an amazing brain, bigger than what this village can hold.” Ara nods a minute nod, “So now what?”

“What do you want to do?”

Ara hesitates, “Italy. A couple of my mates are going…for a year. They have a place; we would all chip in for expenses and stuff…”

“And you want to go?” Aaron asks.

“More than anything,” Ara answers.

“So…go.” Aaron wonders if she can hear his heart breaking over the thought that he isn’t going to get to see his daughter every day.

“But, what about you and dad…and everybody else here? I don’t want to leave you.”

“You aren’t leaving us! And your dad and I would rather have you happy somewhere else than miserable here. And listen, this doesn’t mean that you have to leave and never come back. The front door is always open back home, for whenever, if you are ever, ready to come back home.” Aaron reaches out to stroke Ara’s unruly curls. “But now is the chance for you to spread your wings.”

Ara nods and leans her head on her dads shoulder, and Aaron promptly perches his chin atop her head, his now graying beard tickling the top of her scalp. “I am going to miss you so much, you know?”

Aaron breaths in harshly, trying to hold back impending tears, “I know, love. Me too.”

They stay there for a while, not saying anything, not really needing to. They watch the sun come up over the village, watching it spring to life. Eventually they get up, Robert ringing both of them continuously over the last hour, knowing that they are going to have to fill him in on the plan, and deal with his reaction, which neither of them are especially looking forward to (because it is not like Rob ever over-reacts or anything.) 

Aaron throws his arm around his daughter’s shoulders as they head back down the hill, and towards home.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The Dingle’s won’t let Ara leave without a huge leaving do, and a little guilt-tripping and endless convincing that Italy isn’t that great anyway (even though Ara learned long ago not to let the Dingle’s guilt her into anything). But, after the big event, Aaron, Ara and Robert spend her last night in the village eating pizza on the floor of her bedroom, surrounded by boxes and suitcases, and playing board games- just like they did when she was a kid.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Ara refuses to let her dad’s take her to the airport, knowing that having them there is going to make it even harder for her to actually go, but that doesn’t stop Robert and Aaron standing at the door as Ara bundles the last of her things into the cab.

She slams the boot closed and runs to her dads and hugs them both close to her and whispers, “You know, I love you.” 

And before they know it, Ara is off again, the door slamming to the cab and it is off, and soon out of sight. Robert turns to Aaron, who is still looking out towards the village, “Just you and me then?”

Aaron’s nose scrunches up, “Ugh…” he groans.”

“Shut it you!” Robert smacks his husband’s arm, and Aaron catches his hand, squeezing it. They wait a minute more before they turn back into the house, and wait for Ara to call with news that she landed safely.


	3. My Own Personal Superhero

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Today is the day…the day that Robert gets official confirmation that he is finally an “old man.” Of course, the staircase, that he is really starting to regret now that he has a kid, was his downfall. Tripping on one of Ara’s (or was it the dog’s, he will never know for sure) toys as he heads up the stairs after getting home from the scrap yard, he tumbles down and is pretty sure he can hear his knee just shatter.

And today is the day he gets booked into the hospital to finally have his bum knee fixed. He wonders if he will be able to predict the weather with it now- like a true old fart. 

After a whole lot of prodding by Aaron to actually get out of bed, the only thing that actually does the job is the dog slobbering all over his face “Well, old timer…rise and shine!” 

“Shut it, Aaron.” Aaron is well into his breakfast when Robert finally makes his grand appearance. He goes to grab a piece of Aaron’s toast, only to have his husband slap his had away. “No Rob, we have had this surgery scheduled to months and you are not ruining it now by eating and pouting.” “Fine…”Robert grumbles.

“Rob, you know, once this is all over”- Aaron gets up from the table and makes his way over to where Robert is leaning against the counter, continuing to pouting, “-we can resume some more ‘energetic activities,’” he whispers, “Without you complaining about being in pain.”

“Well, you did say once that I wouldn’t go to the doctor unless my leg was falling off…I guess today is that day.” Aaron just smiles and shakes his head at his grumpy husband when they hear thundering footsteps coming down the stairs “Careful on the stairs, you don’t want to end up like Daddy do you?” Robert yells to Ara, already dressed in her uniform for school. 

“Daddy, are you still going to take me to school today?” Ara asks as she makes her way to the kitchen table where her toast and orange juice is waiting for her. “No love. Remember Daddy is getting his knee fixed today. You know how it has been hurting him, well the doctors are going to make it all better, so he has to go to the hospital,” Aaron explains. “Does that mean he won’t be there when I get home either,” Ara asks with a hint of worry in her voice…although it is kind of hard to tell with her mouth full of toast. “No darling,” Rob comes and sits down next to Ara at the breakfast table, “But Dad is going to bring you to see me after school. And I will be home in a couple of days.”

“Are they going to make you a superhero, daddy?” That takes them aback. But, Robert leans in close to Ara and whispers in her hear, “I’ll see what they can do.” Rob winks and Ara giggles. A short while later, Vic comes barging in the Mill, already teasing Robert about when the reading glasses will be arriving and Aaron is calling Ara down the stairs before a sibling rivalry starts, “Ara, Auntie Vic’s here…time for school!” Ara, once again- no amount of warning is ever going to stop her- charges down the stars. Aaron gives her a kiss on the cheek and passes her school bag over, on the way out the door. But, Ara stops in her tracks, turns on her heels and goes to hug Robert extra tightly: “See if they can give you x-ray vision too Daddy,” she mumbles into his stomach and is gone again in a flash.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
“All right grandpa, now that you are sorted, I’m off to get our princess. Try not to scare off all of the nurses before I get back, please.” 

“Ha ha Aaron, you don’t make fun of the ill. Isn’t that like…blasphemy…or something?”  
“And since when are you the shining example of morality then…Mr. Shifty, is it?” Aaron only gets a scoff in return for that remark. Which a chuckle, Aaron leans down and smacks a kiss on Robert’s cheek, “I’ll be back.”

“Soon though, yeah?” Aaron grabs the television remote and turns on the TV to some gardening program, “Enjoy your flower patches granddad!” The only thing that Aaron hears is a muffled “I swear to God Aaron…” as he leaves Robert’s room.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Poking…poking…and then whispers, “Ara, leave Dad alone, he’s resting.” Robert doesn’t remember falling asleep but he must have because he wakes to little Ara prodding is cheeks. 

“Did they turn you into a superhero yet?”

“Not yet,” Robert whispers to her with a sleepy rasp, leaning over the bed to kiss her head, “later today, darling.” 

Aaron steps out of the room (I’m going to get Ara a snack, can I leave the children alone? Are they going to behave? Robert is really perfecting his death glare today.) And Ara takes to opportunity to push a chair over to the side of Rob’s bed and climb up, gently he reminds her, and sits with Robert on the bed. She unfolds a piece of paper and smoothes it out on her lap.

“What’s that darling, is it a looooove note?”

“Ewww daddy, no! It is for you…I drew it at school.”

“Well, let us have a look then.” When Ara passes it over. Robert looks at the childlike image and tears immediately prick up in his eyes. Scribbled in front of him is Robert himself, or at least his superhero self, with red cape and all. His knees are bright green (and glowing) and x-ray vision was included in the overall look. 

Rob smiles and winks at Ara, “It’s absolutely beautiful darling. I love it.”

“You can show it to the doctors, so they know what to do!” Ara states confidently, because of course. “Will do, now, come give your superhero daddy some cuddles.”

“You aren’t one yet, daddy,” Ara huffs as she tucks herself into Robert’s neck. Of course.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Rob wakes up a few days later, drugged up and sore, but home in his own bed. He blinks slowly a few times, waiting for his vision to adjust to the darkness surrounding the bedroom and a smile creeps slowly onto his face. 

He is in his own bed, but he is definitely not alone. Aaron is on the other side of the bed and Ara is cuddled up in between the two of them. The dog is snoozing at their feet. And yes, all four of them, dog included, are all wearing their own red superhero capes.


	4. Doubts and Dreaming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

“Ara, its bedtime, my dear!” Rob calls out to her as he dries his hands with a tea towel after finishing the dinner dishes. Ara, who is steadfastly determined on making the “largest Lego tower that ever existed,” according to her estimations (it is more like the largest in the living room instead), is thoroughly in her own little world- one that her father does not occupy at the current moment.

“Ara, love, did you hear me…its bedtime now.” Robert makes his way over to her and runs a hand through her wild curls. Still not acknowledging that Rob is even on the same planet, forget being in the same room, “I am waiting for Daddy…then I can go to bed.”

“Well, that is not going to work. Remember, Daddy went to go visit Uncle Adam, so it is just you and me tonight kiddo.”

The next thing he knows, that “world’s largest Lego tower” is in pieces on the floor as Ara had pushed it over in a huff.

“Ara-“ was all Rob could get out before the girl starts to tear up.

“No…But, I want Daddy!”

“Well, I don’t know what to tell you- except that Daddy is not here…and it is still bedtime. So…”

Robert goes to grab Ara’s hand, only to have her pull away. So, we are doing this the hard way tonight. Robert bends down and picks her up, placing her on his hip as he heads for the stairs, little socked feet kicking him in the thighs the whole way.

After a teary bath ad a hair-brushing session where Robert thought that Ara must be on a mission to wake the dead with her screams (he is surprised the whole village hasn’t showed up at the Mill with noise complaints yet) Robert finally gets Ara into bed.

Still trying to get Ara to settle down (and maybe even crack a smile- even though he highly doubts that is in the cards for this particular evening) Rob sits at the end of Ara’s bed and pats her knees.

“So grumpy, how about a story before bedtime, huh?”

“No…” (Well that was definite) “I want Daddy. I don’t want you.”

Robert has been punched in the stomach, for real, many times in his life. But, none has hurt worse than the figurative jab just delivered to his gut by his own daughter. “Well, okay then.” He gets up from her miniature bed to turn out the light. “Goodnight, I love you.” That doesn’t get an answer. Robert closes her door to just a crack and heads toward his and Aaron’s bedroom.

He sits down slowly on his side of their bed and just blows out a pent up breath, his head falling into his hands. He knew parenting was going to be tough. I mean, he was no angel as a child and he and Aaron had been through the wringer when it came to Liv, but I guess you can never be fully prepared for your child to hate you.

He knows she didn’t actually say the word- hate- but he must be doing something awfully wrong if his own kid doesn’t want anything to do with him. *I guess I am just a screw-up in everything, no matter how hard I try,* he thinks to himself as he goes to get ready for bed, before he starts really flagging and fall asleep in his clothes.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
He heard the door creak open and so did his eyes. A glance at his phone on the bedside table showed it was a little after two in the morning. Little feet were scuffing the floor until they stopped beside the bed.

“Daddy…” whispers a still sleep-dazed Ara.

“Sweetheart, are you alright?” The first thing that runs through Robert’s mind is *is she bleeding or vomiting…*

“No…” (Shit) “I can’t sleep…” (Oh, thank God.)

“Well, what do you need me to do for you?”

“Can I sleep here with you, please?”

Robert looks over to the empty half of the bed next to him and then back over to a doe-eyed Ara clutching a teddy bear in her tiny fists. He pretends to contemplate the notion, “All right- but just for tonight, okay?” Ara wastes no time in jumping up on the bed, and right onto Robert’s stomach. She wraps her arms over Rob and snuggles her head onto his chest and Robert wraps his arms around Ara and squeezes her tight.

“Goodnight love, sweet dreams. I love you.”

“Sweet dreams…I love you Daddy.” She sleepily mumbles out before she slips into slumber and Rob lets out a sigh of relief before he does the same.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Aaron opens the front door gingerly and slips off his shoes. He loves Adam, he really does, but he wanted to get home to his family. He tiptoes up the stairs to his bedroom and is greeted by one of the most beautiful sights he things he has ever seen…

Ara is lying fully on top of Robert’s chest, a teddy bear nestled under her chin with Rob’s hand placed firmly on her back, both of them dead to the world. Aaron stops dead in his tracks and just leans against the door-frame to drink in the image for a moment. 

He decides not to disturb the moment and turns back around to go get a little bit more sleep on the sofa downstairs before the usual, everyday chaos of the morning begins- 

But, not before he snaps a picture of the scene…a scene that he wants to watch forever.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ara asks Aaron about his and Robert’s love story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Aaron and Ara are snuggled on the couch, Aaron determined not to move from his spot for the remainder of the day. It is Saturday, and Robert had already awoken him early enough as it is, Jimmy calling him in a panic after getting himself in a spot of bother about the business that he couldn’t get himself out of and Robert had to dash off and fix it.

So, Aaron is steadfastly determined to spend the day lazing about with his daughter watching shit TV and doing nothing more.

Aaron is focused on trying to find something on the telly that will entertain both an adult man and a 6 year old child when Ara pulls at his left had, takes his wedding ring off and slips it on her little fingers (although it is big enough to be a bracelet.)

“Daddy, what’s it like to be married?” Ara asks, twisting the ring around and holding it up to the light, admiring it.

“I love being married sweetheart. I love your daddy very much,” Aaron answers, a little taken aback by the whole scene.

“When you met daddy, was it love at first sight, like in the princess movies?” Ara continues her questioning, without so much as a glance back at Aaron.

“Ummm,” Aaron abandons his task of channel surfing to focus on his daughter’s line of questioning, “not really. Your daddy and I took a while to become friends, and then we fell in love.” 

“Did you know that you would be together forever?” 

“Well, we wanted to,” he hesitates, Aaron and Robert hadn’t really discussed their break-up around Ara yet, “but, some bad things got in the way, so we couldn’t be together.” 

Ara finally looks up at her father, with wide blue eyes, like she can’t believe the information she just heard, but Aaron continues, “but, we came back to each other again, and we will be together…forever.” 

“You promise daddy,” Ara asks, looking for reassurance. “Cross my heart, Aaron says, making a crossing motion over his chest. “Good.” Ara says, satisfied with the information, goes back to looking at Aaron’s ring. 

“Why are you asking about all this anyway, huh?” Aaron asks, running a hand through her yet to be brushed curls. “I am deciding whether I want to get married,” she states matter of factually.

Aaron cannot contain his laugh at this 6 year old contemplating marriage. “Well, lets wait until you grow up a little before you decide yeah? Your dad will have a fit,” Aaron snuggles Ara under his arm, her head going to rest on his chest. 

Ara spends the rest of the day with Aaron’s wedding ring practically falling off of her finger. When Robert asks about it later that evening, Aaron is tight lipped, it is his little secret.


	6. Cuddles for Daddy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaron is sick and Ara doesn't want him to be alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Aaron had, what he firmly believed, was the plague. He had woken up in the middle of the night and ran straight to the toilet to subsequently vomit his guts out for the rest of the night, Robert getting up to get him glasses of water and to rub his husband’s back though the whole ordeal.

But Aaron had finally made his way back to the bed sometime in the wee hours of the morning; completely collapsing form exhaustion (can you die from exhaustion from vomiting?)

He doesn’t even remember falling asleep, that is until he is being woken up with a start by Robert coming in through the bedroom door, carrying a bottle of water, some pain medication and a box of crackers under his arm. Robert sets them down on the nightstand as Aaron groans and tries to turn over onto his back. Robert reaches out and runs his hand over his forehead, getting his sweat-soaked hair off his heated skin.

“Hey you,” Robert greets him softly, “You don’t feel as hot anymore. How are you doing?”  
Aaron just groans in response.

“Hmm, I’ll take that as a ‘not good’ then?” Aaron only then notices that Robert is dressed and has his coat on. “Where are you going?” he asks.

“I have to go pick Ara up from school; you do remember our daughter, don’t you?”

“Shit, it’s afternoon already?”

“Yeah, sleepyhead. Listen, I think I am going to take her to Vic’s to stay for a couple of days.”

That gets Aaron’s attention, “What…why?” he questions, trying to sit up in bed…and failing miserably.

“Aaron, we can’t have her catching whatever this is you have. We don’t need two sick people in the house. “Still,” Aaron pouts, “I want her home.”

“Aaron, she is not going off to war, she is just going up the road. And she will be with Vic, and you know how she spoils her rotten. Look, how about I9 have her call tonight and you can talk to her, huh?”

“Fine,” Aaron continues to pout, “Just tell her that I love her. Oh, and…” he starts, pointing to a floppy grey bunny stuffed animal sitting on top of the dresser on the other side of the room, “take that to her, yeah?”

“Will do, now, bet some sleep. I’ll come home as soon as I can.” Robert kisses his fingers and then presses them to Aaron’s cheek, running his thumb across it softly before tiptoeing out of the room once again, swiping the bunny and switching off the light as he does.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Robert waits outside of the school doors with the other lingering parents, watching the children all file out. When he catches sight of Ara, his face lights up as his daughter runs towards him. He picks her up and swings her in the air when she finally reaches him. 

“Ugh, how is my beautiful girl?” Robert asks, fitting her on his hip, “who was your day?”

“Good daddy!” Ara beams at her father.

“You ready to go home?” Robert asks and Ara nods enthusiastically in response. The pair bundles into the car and make their way back to the village.

“So, lovebug, what would you say to sleeping over at Auntie Vic’s for a few nights, hmm?”  
Robert questions, looking back at his daughter playing with her bunny in the back seat through the rear view mirror.

“Why?” Ara asks back, not even bothering to look up from her toy.

“Your daddy is really sick, and we don’t want you to get sick too.”

“But…I want to see Daddy. Daddy needs cuddles if he is sick.”

“I promise to give him lots of cuddles, so will you go to Auntie Vic’s? Come on, I’m sure she will make those yummy chocolate chip pancakes.”

Ara, still unsure, finally relents as they drive into the village. As they arrive at Vic’s, Ara immediately settles herself in front of the television as Robert fills his sister in, “I am going to pop in at the shop before I head home, so just try to keep her entertained yeah, because she is still a bit sad about not getting to see Aaron,” Robert concludes.

“Don’t worry about it bro, I’ve got it covered,” Vic reassures.

Robert says his goodbyes and as he leaves, Victoria is taking Ara’s schoolbag up to the guestroom, getting it fixed up for her. When Vic is firmly out of sight, Ara takes her grey bunny, which she has yet to let go of, and slips out the front door, making her way down the road and over to the Mill.

Aaron is snoring away, still feeling like death warmed over when he feels a prodding on his stomach. Waking from his slumber, prepared to run to the toilet again, he is instead met with two pairs of eyes, one blue and one plastic. Ara is standing in front of him holding her bunny, poking him in the stomach.

“Ara, what are you doing here,” Aaron asks, making a feeble attempt at lifting his head form the pillow, “Aren’t you suppose to be at your Auntie Vic’s? Where is your dad? Does he know you are here?”

Ara looks down at her feet and shakes her head subtly. Aaron sighs and reaches blindly for his phone on the nightstand as Ara climbs up on the bed beside Aaron.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Outside, Robert is leaving the shop, both his hands holding bags when he is just about bowled over by a panicking Victoria.

“Rob, Rob, I have been calling you! I can’t find her anywhere!”

“What are you on about?” Robert asks, trying to decipher his sister’s rushed and panicked words.

“Ara, I went upstairs for five minutes and she is gone!”

Before Robert even beings to start to panic over his daughter’s absence, his phone rings in his pocket. Robert picks it up after seeing Aaron’s name displayed on the screen. “Aaron, I know I said I would be home soon but…”

“Rob, Ara…” Aaron says, cutting his husband off, “she’s over here, with me.”

Robert sighs, his shoulders sagging, mouthing ‘she’s home’ to Victoria, who then follows her brother’s lead and also lets out a sigh. “Okay, I’m coming home…” Robert says, hanging up the phone. He picks up the dropped bags and heads downs the road, fully intending to give his daughter a talking to about scaring him and her Auntie Vic half to death.

But, it doesn’t really matter anyway, because the next day, all three of them are sick as a dog and Vic, Chas and even Paddy are rotating shifts to take care of the family.


	7. Searching for Monsters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics

“Ara, I’m not going to say it again…breakfast!” Aaron calls up the stairs, which is them quickly accompanied by a slamming door and a patter of footsteps through the hall.

“What were you doing up there, huh? It’s not like you to need to be called to breakfast more than once, lovebug,” Robert asks Ara as she proceeds to plop down in her seat next to him while Aaron puts her toast down in front of her.

Ara counters by asking a question of her own, “Daddy, how come you and dad were jumping on the bed last night?” That freeze the room, “What are you talking about, Ara?” Aaron eventually squeaks out.

“Last night, I couldn’t sleep. But your door was locked and you were jumping on the bed. Why couldn’t I play with you?” Aaron and Robert share a wide-eyed stare, the only thing that breaks the tension in the room is Liv’s snort form where she is standing at the kitchen counter, pouring her cereal.

“Daddy?” Ara asks again, toast crumbs escaping from her mouth. 

“Yeah, Daddy,” Liv adds, sliding down in her seat at the table next to Ara, “how come?” with a smile that wouldn’t melt butter.

Aaron just gives Liv the *big brother death glare* and Rob finally speaks up.

“We weren’t jumping on the bed honey. Your dad and I were…checking for monsters. And we were doing a REALLY good search, so we had to shake the bed.” 

“How come your door was locked? I wanted cuddles.”

“Well…” Aaron adds in, finally catching on to Rob’s little fairytale, “If we did find any monsters, we had to make sure they didn’t escape.”

“Oh, okay,” Ara says, accepting the tale as pure fact. “And we promise to give you extra cuddles tonight, okay?” Robert adds in for good measure, kissing Ara’s head.

Liv quietly laughs into her cereal, and both boys snap to attention. “Ara, why don’t you finish your breakfast and we can go see Grandaddy Paddy! I think there are some new puppies?!” Aaron quickly distracts. All Aaron had to say was ‘puppies’ and Ara was out of her seat like a shot and up the stairs.

“Searching for monsters, is that what we are calling it now? You two do realize that we used to share a wall at the pub. Were you searching for monsters then?”

Rob stands up and looks down at Liv, “20 pounds and you never mention it again.”

“50, and it is as good as forgotten.”

“35, and you don’t have to babysit for two months.”

“Deal!” The money changes hands and Aaron just stands by and scrubs his hands over his face. God, he needs a holiday!


	8. A Trauma of the Heart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for @aarondingel on tumblr

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he iwll not feature in these fics

Aaron loves being a parent, he really does. He never thought in a million years that his future would include a handsome and successful husband and especially, not the most gorgeous daughter in the world (if you asked him, thank you very much!)

He loves his life, and he loves his family, he truly does. But, then there are those days. The days when he wishes that he was still a bachelor and didn’t have the responsibility of being a husband, a big brother and a parent sitting on his shoulders.

Because his family is doing his head in.

Liv had showed up at their doorstep the week previous from her own adventures and had been staying at the Mill. And, seeing as Ara worships the ground that her Auntie Liv walks on, Ara wanted to follow in her footsteps- right into all of her trouble as well.

After a crazy week, on that involved an incident with Doug’s vegetable cart, Liv was finally off again and Vic had decided to drag Robert on a “Brother/Sister Holiday,” leaving Aaron and Ara alone for the weekend. And Ara had caught the trouble-making bug.

Aaron cannot count the amount of times has had to reprimand his daughter today, and it isn’t even noon. Aaron was in the kitchen, trying to do the washing up before he made lunch and Ara was bouncing off the walls. He turns from his spot at the sink, “Ara, love, how about you do Daddy a favor and go play outside, yeah?”

“But Daddy, I don’t want to!” Ara complains.

“Well then, I am telling you, go outside for a while. You can come back in when lunch is ready.”

Ara opens her mouth to protest but Aaron beats her to the punch, “Now Ara, outside,” pointing to the garden for emphasis. Ara goes out with a huff, but she goes nonetheless and Aaron lets out a pent-up sigh. Finally, a little peace and quiet- if only momentarily. 

Aaron continues his task of finishing the washing up as he listens to his own version of a radio program- Ara talking to her fanciful characters from her copious amount of stories as she runs back and forth throughout their garden. That is one thing that Aaron can say about his daughter- with her around, you are never basking in silence (no matter how much Aaron may crave it at moments.)

Just as he finishes the dishes and goes to the fridge to start on lunch for the pair, a scream echoes through the garden, and then nothing, silence. Aaron’s blood turns to ice in his veins and hr rushes out through to the back garden.

Ara is lying still, under the tree that she likes to climb (the one that she is convinced faries live in.) She is not moving- at all.

Aaron’s legs have never carried him so fast, all the while mumbling “No,” over and over again until he reaches his lifeless little girl. He kneels down and cups his hands over Ara’s cheeks, trying to wake her.

“Ara, love? Ara, wake up sweetheart! Huh, wake up for Dad!” Aaron chants repeatedly, his words becoming more and more frantic and breathless as his daughter’s unconscious state remains unchanging. But, she has a pulse, she is breathing. Tears fall from Aaron’s eyes as he grabs his phone from his pocket and calls and ambulance. He is afraid to touch her too much, to move her. 

Aaron just sits on the ground in the garden, stroking his daughter’s hair and face, waiting for the ambulance to arrive, cursing that they aren’t there fast enough.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The paramedics bundle Ara into the back of the ambulance and Aaron hops in behind her, without an acknowledging glance to the small crowd of villagers that have gathered and are hovering around the Mill. Aaron immediately grabs a still unconscious Ara’s hand, squeezing, hoping that the squeeze will be enough to jolt her awake. 

He pulls out his phone with his other free hand and chooses Robert’s name off his contact list without even having to glace down, having called that familiar number all too often. Normally he would try to keep calm, control his emotions, as to not worry Robert, but at this particular moment, Aaron just doesn’t care- he needs Robert.

He hears Robert’s cheerful, “Hey you,” and Aaron doesn’t give him the chance to continue. “Rob, its Ara,” Aaron’s tears start to fall and his lip trembles once again, “She’s hurt. Its bad Rob, we are on the way to the hospital. You need to come home.”

The phone line went quiet for a beat, and then Robert spoke again, “I’m on my way.” And then he was gone again (luckily Robert and Victoria only went a few hours away.) The rest of the ambulance journey was quiet; the only sounds are Aaron’s occasional sniffs. Ara was…silent, the only thing that his daughter, for sure, is not. 

When they get to the hospital, finally, the hospital staff carted Ara off, and Aaron was left alone, worrying.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
It has been what feels like forever, and Aaron had already thoroughly pissed off every member of the hospital staff trying to get an update on his daughter. He was pacing the waiting room, stomping a path on the floor, when Robert rushed in. He immediately enveloped Aaron in a crushing hug, and Aaron breaks.

“Robert, she’s hurt, and they won’t tell me anything,” Aaron explains, his words muffled in Robert’s shoulder. “Shhh,” Robert chants, all the while rubbing his husband’s back. “Tell me what happened.” Robert asked, trying to keep his cool, they didn’t need the pair of them panicking together. 

“I don’t know, she was in the garden, and I heard her scream…” Aaron has to pause that that, he will never forget that scream; he’s afraid that it will haunt him, “I think she fell, she wasn’t moving Rob…”Aaron doesn’t get to continue as a nurse interrupts, “Ara Dingle-Sugden’s family?” she asks. 

“Yes, we are her father’s,” Robert answers, “what’s happening, we need to know!”

“Ara is awake now,” Aaron just about crumbles at that, “She has a concussion, so we are going to keep her for a couple of days, just to be sure. But, she is up and chatting away, so I doubt we need to worry.” Aaron and Robert both chuckle at that. “She also has a small break in her right arm. We will set it and she will have a cast for a few weeks. But, barring a couple of cuts and scrapes, she is all right. She has been asking for her Daddy.”

The nurse leads them to Ara’s room and they thank her before she leaves them. Both men peer through the window where Ara is laying on the bed, chatting a nurse’s ear off as they check their vitals.

“Let’s go see our little girl,” Robert says as he runs his hand down Aaron’s arm, as he still starts at his daughter through the window.

“I am a bad dad,” Aaron states, almost matter-of-factly.

Robert turns him around quickly and looks horrified at Aaron’s statement. “Don’t ever say that ever again.” Robert is serious. 

“I sent her outside because she was doing my head in! I want to get away from my own daughter and she got hurt. The whole thing is my fault!” 

“Aaron, you are the father of an 8 year old. You are like every other parent who needs a break, a justifiable break. And kids get hurt all the time, its called life, Aaron. She is okay. And this is the farthest thing from your fault. I am not going to let you blame yourself for an accident.”

“I should have been watching her.”

“Aaron, look at me,” Robert grips his arms tight and stares into his watering eyes, “You are one of the most amazing fathers I have ever seen. Ara adores you! This was an accident. We can’t watch them all the time. You have to believe me Aaron; this comes with the territory of being a parent. But nobody is blaming you, nobody! I love you, and our daughter loves you. And she needs you now. So, let’s go see our girl, yeah?”

Aaron nods and bits at his bottom lip, trying to control his tears, “Okay, but we are cutting that tree down.”

“But what about the fairies?” Rob questions and gets Aaron to finally crack a smile. Robert grabs his husband’s hand and nods towards Ara’s room. 

When the pair enters, Ara beams, “Daddy, you’re home!”

“I am! Because some little monkey got into some bother, didn’t she?” Robert leans over and kisses his daughter on the cheek, “No more of that, okay?”

Aaron makes his way over to the other side of the bed, “You scared me half to death, my love,” he says with a sniffle. Ara reaches her little hands out and puts them one on either side of Aaron’s face, “Don’t cry Daddy. I don’t like it when you cry,” Ara pats his cheeks.

“Then don’t scare Daddy, okay? I love you too much.”

“I love you daddy. But, I am strong, like a superhero!” she states, as if fact. “Well, let’s not test it, please. Pinky promise?” Aaron asks, holding out his pinky. Ara hooks her tine one around his, nodding excitedly.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Two days later, and Ara is released from hospital with a bump on the head and a fresh cast on her arm. As they enter the house, Ara asked Aaron to carry her up the stairs, Ara is getting far too big for Aaron to carry these days, but those big blue eyes were hard to resist. 

He picks her up with a giggle and navigates his way up the stairs. Just as Aaron is about to turn into Ara’s bedroom, she shakes her head and points to her father’s bedroom. Aaron rolls his eyes and laughs, but he does it anyway. Aaron places her gently in the middle of his and Robert’s bed, and as he goes to walk away, Ara reaches for his hand, pulling him back.

“Lay with me daddy.” And Aaron doesn’t need to be asked twice. He settles down next to his daughter and she snuggles up against him, her head on his chest, her wild curls sprayed out over him. “I love you daddy,” she whispers, on the verge of sleep.

“I love you, to the moon and back darling.” Aaron returns, running his hands through her hair, listening to her soft breaths even out as she falls into a deep slumber.

Robert makes his way up for a short while later and takes in the scene. “Out like a light, then?” Robert asks. “Fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.”

“Been an exciting couple of days, to say the least,” Robert makes his way over to the bed to join the rest of his family. Robert runs a hand down Ara’s back before reaching over her to grab Aaron’s hand, squeezing tightly, “You are amazing,” Robert whispers. “I love you,” Aaron says back.

The family then falls asleep together, all bundled up before they make their way out to have tea with Chas at the pub (and Ara is determined to have the entire village sign her cast.)


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

It is still the early hours of the morning when Aaron wakes. Robert had left before the morning light for a week-long business trip to Germany, the first time since Ara was born. He turned it down at first, but Aaron had insisted he go, it would bring in a lot of business and money, and they would be able to save for Ara’s future. Aaron remembers a vague brush of a kiss against his forehead before he drifted back into a slumber.

He sleepily pads down the hall into the nursery, looking over the crib at a very much awake and squirming Ara.

“Well, look who’s up, princess?” Aaron is surprised he hasn’t heard from his daughter yet this morning. She is usually demanding her daddies attention at first light. Aaron slowly picks up Ara and tucks her under his chin and shuffles his way back into his own bedroom.

He gingerly sits down on the bed, cradling Ara’s head, stroking her soft hair when she lets out a little whimper at the jostling. Aaron settles back against the headboard , lifts up his knees and lays Ara down on this thighs.

“Are you being good for me. Because, you know, it is just me and you for a couple of days kiddo. Daddy is off wheeling and dealing, showing off like he normally does. So you just have to deal with me for a while, that okay?”

Ara snuffles and wiggles against his thighs, the corner of her tiny pink lips quirking up.

“God,” Aaron breathes, “you are just so gorgeous aren’t you?” He runs his thumb over Ara’s hand, her tiny fingers reaching out for his.

“I can’t believe that you are mine, you know that? I can’t believe that I get to be your daddy. Never thought that would happen. But, I wouldn’t change it for the world. Best thing that ever happened to me…well….except for maybe your Daddy and Auntie Liv, they are pretty good too, I guess.”

Aaron leans close and whispers, “But, don’t tell either of them that you are my favorite.”

Ara then lets out a little squeal, leading to a full-on cry. Aaron picks her back up, tucking her against his chest, letting out a little chuckle.

“Okay then, I think it is time for both of us to have a little breakfast,” he said, getting up off the bed and heading for the door, swiping his phone off the nightstand as he does.

“And then I think we will give your Daddy a call, huh? The soft lad has already left four messages.”


	10. Ara's First Day of School

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prompted on tumblr

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Aaron gets up from Ara’s bed with a groan; he is far too big for his daughter’s miniature mattress.

“No daddy read me another one!” Ara pleads, always wanting more bedtime stories, she can never get enough. “I think to is enough for one night, and you have to get your sleep, don’t you? You have a big day tomorrow. You remember what it is don’t you?”

“I am going to school!” Ara cheers, pointing to her uniform that is hanging on her closet door.

“Yep, growing up on me are you,” Aaron sits on the end of Ara’s bed and tickles her feet, getting the little girl to giggle. 

“Is it going to be scary daddy?” Ara asks Aaron, her voice quieting a bit. “It might be a little scary,” Aaron answers, “but you are my brave girl…”

Just then, Robert walks past Ara’s bedroom and interrupts, “Hey, what are you still doing up little girl?” he asks, leaning against the doorframe. “Don’t you have somewhere to be tomorrow?”

“School daddy!”

“Right! My baby girl is growing up,” Robert says in a pretend sob, shuffling his way over to her bed before he smacks a kiss on her cheek. “You will always be my baby though,” Robert whispers in her ear, as he does so, Ara giggles as the secret. “Now, I think it’s time you went to bed, don’t you,” Robert asks as he stands up again.

“Your dad’s right, time for bed,” Aaron agrees and gets up from Ara’s bed. He picks up Ara’s fluffy bunny stuffed animal that ended up on the floor sometime during bedtime storytelling and hands it to his daughter, who immediately snuggles it under her chin and scoots down under her covers.

Aaron bends down and kisses Ara’s cheek and runs his hand through her hair, “goodnight love, see you in the morning,” he whispers. Both Aaron and Robert stand in her doorway for a moment before turning out Ara’s light and closing her door a crack. 

As they make their way to their own bedroom to get ready for bed, Aaron whispers to Robert, “she’s going to be okay, right?” his voice laced with worry.

Robert stops getting undressed, his shirt open on his frame, and heads over to Aaron, snaking his arms around Aaron’s waist, pulling his husband close, “Have you met our daughter? She will be fine,” he says, pulling Aaron in for a hug.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The next morning, as Aaron, Robert and Ara pull up to the school and bundle out of the car, Ara quickly grabs her fathers’ hands tightly as they make their way through the school’s entrance and to Ara’s classroom. 

When they reach the room, Ara freezes in her tracks, her eyes watching intently at all the other children go through the doorway, all chattering away. Aaron squeezes Ara’s hand tightly and tugs on one of her ‘slightly-tamed-but-still-wild’ curls. Ara looks up at him, her blue eyes wide.

“Go get ‘em,” he whispers and Ara smiles brightly. She lets go of her fathers’ hands and runs into the crowd of kids. Robert grabs Aaron’s hand and they watch their daughter disappear into the classroom.


	11. Don't Let Them Dull Your Sparkle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Rob doesn’t even see Ara, she stomps up the stairs faster than he can turn around from his seat at the kitchen table, hoping that a day working from home alone would help him get through the stacks of paperwork on his desk and Nicola off his back.

Following the pounding footsteps and the reverb of the door slamming, Rob goes upstairs and through to Ara’s room where she is standing at the end of her bed, giving her shoelaces the what for.

“Hey love, what are you doing home from school?”

Nothing, no answer. Except those shoes are now being flung towards him standing in the doorway.

“Ara, what happened?”

“NOTHING! I felt sick!” Ara screamed at her father.

“You are sick? Well do you have a temperature or....” the rest of Roberts’s sentence was cut off by trying to dodge Ara’s schoolbag, which was coming right for him. “Can’t you just go away? Leave me alone!” Ara added.

This was something new to Rob, this side to Ara, and it scared him a little bit.

“Hey, what’s up?”

Ara is standing in front of her window, until she slides down and crumples underneath it…and that is when the tears start to flow. 

“Why am I not good enough?” Robert can actually feel all of the air leave is lungs.

Robert goes to sit next to Ara, who is now crying into her knees: “What are you talking about?”

Ara doesn’t give an answer, but her sobs begin to get more anguished and frantic. Rob smoothed a hand down her curly locks and strokes a finger over what is exposed of her cheek, “Love…”

It is a little while before hushed and muffled words are actually spoken again: “There are these girls at school…they are just so mean to me. I don’t get it, I try to be nice to them, but they just…they hate me.”

*No* is all Robert can think, *not his daughter* “Is that why you came home? Were they bullying you?” Rob’s words becoming more concerned, tinged with anger.

“They just wouldn’t stop calling me all sorts. That I was useless, pathetic, and ugly. I just didn’t want to be there anymore. So, I just said I was sick. Why do they hate me so much Daddy?”

Ara hadn’t called him Daddy is years. “Love, look at me.” 

Ara slowly lifts her head out of the cavern of her knees and meekly looks at her dad, with tear-stained cheeks darkened black from where her mascara ran, not looking at him in the eyes. 

But, Rob cups her cheeks and makes sure she looks directly at him, “You…you are none of those things. You are such a gift to this world Ara.” 

“You have to say that, you are my dad,” she retorts, trying to pull her face away from her father’s grasp. 

“No, I wouldn’t say it unless it was true; you can ask your dad about that. You have such an amazing heart and so much love to give, sweetheart. Those girls don’t deserve it.”

“But, why do they have to be horrible? I never did anything to them.”

“Some people…they are just bullies. They like to make others feel bad to build themselves up. They take advantage of people with good hearts, like yours.”

Rob uses his thumbs, which are resting on her moist cheeks, to swipe under Ara’s eyes. He tucks a stray curl behind her ear as Ara looks down at her hands, pulling her sleeves over them (Aaron’s influence).

“I just don’t know what to do,” she says so quietly that it Rob a minute to even realize that she spoke at all. 

“Honey, I know that you probably don’t want to hear this, but you are just going to have to ignore them, don’t add fuel to the fire.”

“But…”

“Wait, let me finish. If they do start in on it again, you tell your teacher, okay. Don’t let people like that get away with it, and certainly don’t let them dull your sparkle, sweetheart. I know it is not going to be easy, but that is what your dad and I are for. You talk to us, yeah? Don’t bottle things up. That is what we are here for.”

“I guess…”

“And, listen, you are a Sugden and a Dingle, you have the whole village on your side, just know that. Any one of them will be right by your side if you need it.”

Ara doesn’t say anything, just tucks herself into Robert’s neck and throws her legs over her his, letting out a huge sniffle. And Rob just holds his daughter, and tries to quell his own tears from falling.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
The sunlight that streams through the window above their heads has turned from a golden yellow to a dusky orange, signaling just how long they have been sitting in that same spot. Ara is snoozing away, Rob zoning out, thinking about his little girl when he hears the front door close and footsteps stomp up the stairs.

Aaron, at first, walks past Ara’s open door in favor of heading to his own bedroom, but is stopped in his tracks when he sees the scene.

At first, there is a flash of confusion that hits his face, but when Aaron looks at Rob, he knows there is something up… 

“Hi…” he says softly, taking in his sleeping daughter (they are going to have a conversation tonight)

“Hi…” Robert retorts, Nicola is just going to have to wait for that paperwork.


	12. New Years

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

It’s Ara’s first New Years. This time last year, Aaron and Robert were just pondering the idea of starting a family. After everything they have been through over the years, they were finally in a position where they felt settled…content. 

And now, Ara was finally here, just a couple of days old, born on the best Boxing Day either of them have ever, and will ever, have, and both of them are utterly exhausted. Both of them have been up since 4am when Ara decided it was the right time to scream and not stop. 

They are walking shells of human beings now, it being midday. Aaron is pacing throughout the Mill, softly rocking a now sleeping Ara, eyes drooping and silently begging that she will stay asleep. Robert, who went to David’s for more milk, stumbles back in the door a little too loudly, which startles Aaron out of his trance.

“Shhhhh!” Aaron hisses at his husband, looking back down at his daughter who shifted and snuffled in his arms, but luckily remained asleep.

“Sorry, she okay?” Robert asks, making his way to the kitchen to put away the milk.

“She’s fine, asleep, now.” Aaron says, following his husband.

“Oh, I ran into your mum, she is still begging us to come to the pub tonight. She said we could bring Ara, set her up in the backroom.” Rob says, coming over to where Aaron is leaning against the counter, kissing his head and cradling Ara’s in his hands.

“Ugh, I told her no. I am too tired this year. We will catch her up later. I just don’t want to leave the house this year.”

“Then that is what we will do.” Robert confirms, getting a soft smile from Aaron in return.  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
It is 1:24am when Aaron wakes, needing to pee and entirely too warm from all of the blankets Robert had piled on the bed, his husband constantly cold. 

After a trip to the bathroom he heads to the nursery to check on Ara. He lifts her up and careful cradles her against his chest and takes her to his bedroom. He goes over to the window, and looks down, the normally quiet village is still bustling from the New Years festivities. The Woolpack still lit up and buzzing.

“Happy New Year little one,” Aaron whispers to his daughter. “We are going to see you grow this year, me and your daddy. And your Auntie Liv, you going to get into trouble like her, hmmmm?” Ara lets out a little whine in her slumber. 

“You are the best thing to happen to me this year, even if you decided to show up at the end of it. You are going to be my favorite thing to happen to me every year, forever.” 

Aaron bends forward and leaves a soft kiss on Ara’s little bald head, and boops her nose before he returns his attention back to the window.

“And tomorrow, we go see Nana Chas, hmmm. Hopefully she won’t be too mad at Daddy, not seeing you today. She has already left enough messages already. The last three I am sure she wasn’t sober.”


	13. Best Birthday Ever

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This may or may not totally was inspired by a pic of Danny in a suit holding his nephew.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb even existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Robert is not expecting much today, even though today is his birthday. But, Ara is only a couple of months old and both he and Aaron have been dead on their feet most days. And honestly, the best birthday Robert could think about was having a quiet night in with his hubby and his daughter.

So, when he gets a text from Aaron, who had skived off early, just as Rob was locking up at the scrapyard telling him to meet him at the pub after work, he is a bit shocked to be honest. Aaron had been just as tired as he had, if not more because he had been taking over Ara’s nighttime feeds for a bit, while Rob had meetings. So, he is surprised he wanted to brave the Dingles for a night instead of just going home, just the three of them. But, Rob figures one pint wouldn’t hurt, he guesses.

Robert is answering an email as he walks through the pub doors, otherwise he would have noticed the Woolpack all decked out in balloons and streamers. And the entire Dingle and Sugden clans littered throughout the pub-some already a few pints in.

Rob only looks up when they yell a “Happy Birthday” and Aaron is standing in front of him, decked out in a gorgeous suit holding a sleepy Ara in his arms, who is dressed in a little pink onesie (of course she is sleepy now- she will probably be up all night.)

“What’s all this?” Robert asks, making his way over to his beautiful family, holding out his arms to take Ara away from Aaron.

“It’s your birthday, we couldn’t not celebrate. You don’t have many more left grandad.”

“Shut it, you!” Rob laughs anyway and smiles at his amazing husband.

“Happy Birthday Rob,” Aaron whispers and then leans in to kiss Robert softly.

After more than a few pints and a less than calm evening-especially when you get all the Dingles together in a room with free-flowing alcohol- the three of them make their way back to the Mill, exhausted but so incredibly happy. Rob decides then and there, that this is definitely his best birthday ever!


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

It is raining outside and the wind is really starting to whip at the trees…that is when the cries come through the baby monitor.

Aaron is the first to hear them (Rob is dead to the world beside him) and so he goes to the source. Ara is in her crib, her cries starting to get more and more anguished when Aaron lifts her up and holds her to his chest, all the while shushing her.

He settles down carefully in the rocking chair they have in the corner of the nursery and slowly begins to rock back and forth with Ara now crying into his chest.

It takes a while for Ara to settle but she eventually does and Aaron holds her closer to his chest. It is times like these that Aaron cannot believe his life. He gets to do this…he gets to sit here in the middle of the night rocking his baby daughter…his baby girl… He gets to smell that unbelievably unique baby smell. He gets to listen to her snuffle against him in the quietness of the nighttime surrounding them. This is a life that he gets to have…how unbelievable is that!

Shuffling from the doorway breaks Aaron out of his trance only to be greeted by Rob leaning over his shoulder, sleep-ruffled and yawning.

“She alright…” Robert asks while engulfing Ara’s head in his enormous hands, a thumb running over her soft, downy hair.

“Yeah, the storm must have disturbed her…she’s okay now.”

“You alright?” Rob asks with a kiss on Aaron’s bedhead”

“Never better.”


	15. Aaron's Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

It’s Aaron’s birthday, and Robert has nothing. He didn’t forget, of course not. But life managed to get too in the way this year. Ara had just turned 4 years old and was a whirlwind through the lives of everyone around her, she was talkative and inquisitive, if not a bit demanding. 

But, Robert is not anything if not a man with a plan. He slipped Gerry extra cash if he could work extra hours at the scrapyard that day, Aaron just had a pickup in the morning and would be back around noon-time. He also bundled Ara up and gave her to Chas to look after for the night, of course not after playing 20 questions with his daughter about why exactly (there may have been a bribe with Auntie Vic’s special chocolate cake…but he won’t tell.)

Robert has a mission at hand, and by God, this year his birthday plans are going to go right.

When Aaron arrives home in the afternoon, he is greeted by a darkened home, only dimly lit by candles that he knows, for a fact, they didn’t have before.

“Robert?” Aaron puts the question out to his seemingly M.I.A husband, that is until he sees a figure bent over the sink come into focus.

It is said husband, now straightening up slowly, decked out in Aaron’s old overalls from his days at the garage. Robert’s hair a mess, a streak of something along-side his freckles, adorning his cheeks.

“I heard somebody needed a mechanic?” Robert states, with hooded eyes and a sly smirk.

“What the hell is this,” is Aaron’s retort to his husband’s bad-porno flirting skills.

“This…this is your wildest fantasy,” Robert makes his way over to where Aaron is just standing in their living room, taking in the scene.

“Is it now…my wildest fantasy…” Robert snakes his hands around Aaron’s waist, pulling him in for a soft kiss.

“Okay, it might be mine,” Robert admits, “you always did look damn sexy in the overalls.”

Aaron leans in and kisses Robert again, a little more forceful this time.

“Happy Birthday Aaron” Robert whispers as their lips part, but foreheads are still plastered together.

“Just get me laid…dirty little grease monkey.”


	16. Meet Us There

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Robert walks into a dark and empty Mill. It has been a long day of meetings, he honestly couldn’t believe that anybody could be that boring, like it wasn’t scientifically possible. But, the throbbing at his temples is definite proof.

His normally bustling home with his messy husband, his loud sister-in-law and a baby was so silent that Rob starts to worry a bit at the lack of noise.

“Aaron!” he calls out, and again once he has made his way up the stairs, but not one peep or sighting of his family.

Coming back down the stairs, he spots the bright yellow piece of paper on the kitchen table...

“Tea at pub, taking Liv and Ara with me. Meet us there. XX”

Not being one to be asked twice, Rob heads back out the door and into the village, sun setting overhead.

But when he arrives, his family is nowhere in sight. The pub is only half-full, so it is not like the are hidden among the crowds. When Chas sees him after popping her head up from clearing a glass, all she does is point to the backroom and Robert follows her finger.

Sprawled out on the couch is an entirely unconscious Aaron with a similarly unconscious Ara on his chest, Liv following suit sitting on the floor with her head back against the cushions. Remnants of tea scattered on the table, bottles and toys strewn about the coffee table and a film completely forgotten about still playing softly on the television.

Robert leans over the back of the sofa and runs his hand through his husband’s unruly curls, doing the same to their daughter's downy ones that are just starting to really take form. Robert just stares for a minute, taking in the scene, before he quietly tiptoes out again, closing the door behind him, hoping Vic can fix him something last minute.


	17. A Whistle in the Wind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> for @aarondingel on tumblr
> 
> Based on the instagram video of Danny Miller holding Adam Thomas's daughter.
> 
> come join me on my tumblr @7amlecturerambles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote most of these before Seb existed, so therefore, he will not feature in these fics.

Ara had made her grand entrance into their lives two months ago and Aaron and Robert had never been happier- or more exhausted in their lives.

Ara’s existence brought its own fanfare within itself, but now, she was colicky and grouchy and hardly slept, which really made her presence known throughout the small village on the days that the dads tried to get her out of the house and into the fresh air.

But now, even thinking about doing anything is a distant thought because both men are bone tired and Ara isn’t any more settled. Robert had reluctantly left the house for David’s after they realized that their refrigerator had only baby formula and a single solitary bottle of ketchup. And he had left Aaron face-down on the sofa, Ara in her bassinet right beside it. She had been crying for the better part of the morning and Aaron took the few minutes of quiet to try and get some much needed kip.

But that hope was short-lived when Ara started rustling and let out another wail. Aaron sits up and leans over the bassinet and picks his tearful daughter up. He holds her close and starts pacing the room.

“Come on, love…” he chants amid shoosing and rubbing Ara’s back, “I know you’re uncomfortable, but try to calm down for Dad,” Aaron desperately hoping that his words would somehow be understood by Ara’s little baby brain. 

But after twenty more minutes of Ara’s cries only getting louder, it doesn’t seem to have.

Aaron shuffles his way through the house until he reaches the back garden, hoping that maybe a change of scenery would help his little weepy bundle. He cradles his daughter in his arms, rocking her back and forth on his feet, giving anything to dry the tears soaking those little pink cheeks. 

“Look Ara…” Aaron whispers, “look at the little bird,” pointing to a bluebird that has just swooped by the pair and landed in the trees surrounding the garden. 

“Look sweetheart…” Aaron continues. And then he lets out a little whistle, “that is what the bird sounds like,” whistling again.

Ara’s wails start to quiet at the new sound, her heaving eases and her restless frame quieting as Aaron continues his soft whistles, mimicking the birds that surround them. When all the tears are dried, Aaron rocks Ara to sleep, holding her close to his chest once again and rubbing circles on the sleeping baby’s back. 

When he tiptoes back inside and puts Ara back down in the bassinet, he checks his phone to see a text from David, of all people, informing him that Robert fell asleep at the shop and to expect him home a little late.


End file.
